Did the Cincinnati Reds Wait Too Long AGAIN? Spencer Steer Headed for Surgery | MLB News, Rumors

Trace Fowler and Mike Hart discuss the news that Spencer Steer is having surgery.

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Spencer Steer Needs Wrist Surgery. Did the Reds Wait Too Long?

Spencer Steer’s season has been over for weeks. Now the Cincinnati Reds know rest will not be enough to fix his right wrist.

Steer is scheduled to undergo surgery Sept. 30 in Phoenix to repair a torn tendon sheath. He injured the wrist on a swing against the Cardinals on July 26 and has not played since. The Reds initially hoped the injury would heal through rest and treatment, but Steer felt discomfort when he took aggressive swings in Cincinnati last weekend. Manager Terry Francona said Steer was ready to move forward with the operation. The club expects him to be ready for spring training in 2027.

That timeline raises the question Reds fans are asking: If Steer needs surgery now, why did it take two months to get here?

It is a fair question, especially after Cincinnati spent most of the second half without one of its most useful hitters. Steer played six positions this season, giving Francona options across the infield and outfield. Before the injury, he hit .238 with 16 home runs, 40 RBIs and a .740 OPS in 98 games. Those numbers do not tell the whole story of his value to a roster that depended on his ability to move around the diamond.

But the decision looks different when you follow what the Reds and Steer knew at each point. In July, Steer described a partial tear of the sheath that helps hold the tendon in place. He hoped a splint and rest would allow it to heal without surgery. Francona later said the wrist specialist’s first choice was also to avoid an operation. This was a treatment path Steer wanted to try, with medical guidance behind it.

There was even an encouraging update on Sept. 11. After seeing the specialist again, Steer was cleared to increase his activity and begin swinging. The Reds discussed the possibility of getting him at-bats in the Arizona Fall League, largely so he could test the wrist before the offseason. At that stage, surgery was hardly a foregone conclusion.

Then came the aggressive swings. Feeling the wrist “grab” during that workout changed the calculation. Continuing to wait would have pushed any eventual operation further into the offseason. Scheduling it now gives Steer a path to recover before spring training, though the real test will come when he resumes baseball activities.

Fans can still be frustrated with the outcome. Steer missed the final two months, the attempt to avoid surgery failed, and the Reds now enter another offseason waiting on an injured player. It is reasonable to ask whether an earlier operation would have provided more certainty for 2027. What we cannot say from the public information is that surgery in July was clearly the better medical choice. The specialist recommended trying to heal the injury first, and Steer made enough progress in September to be cleared to swing again.

The immediate impact on the Reds is limited because Steer was already unlikely to return this season. The larger issue is how Cincinnati plans for next year. The club needs more reliable offense, and it cannot build its entire plan around the assumption that Steer will immediately return to his best form. His versatility is valuable, but the Reds still need to decide where he fits and add enough depth that one injury does not leave several spots exposed.

For Steer, the focus turns to surgery and rehab. For the Reds, the difficult part is explaining how they will strengthen a lineup that needed him while he was out. The question of whether they waited too long will linger. The clearest answer available today is that the attempt to avoid surgery did not work, and Cincinnati must make sure this lost season does not become a setback for 2027.